The Consumerist Shops: Zalman Reserator 1

By consumerist.comNovember 1, 2005

This water cooling tower was purchased to keep our loud, home-built PC from echoing off concrete walls. To that end, the Zalman Reserator 1 worked well. Unfortunately, it soon (two-three weeks) acquired a buzz all its own, likely due to a faulty impeller blade in the aquarium pump that circulates water through the entire system.

In early October, the pump stopped functioning altogether. Zalman’s customer service department, contacted by phone, offered to send a replacement, if we were willing to ship the faulty pump back. We agreed to these terms and received notice that our replacement pump would arrive in 3-5 business days. Two full weeks later, we have not received the pump.

Verdict: Water cooling is nifty and quiet, but when it breaks, the high heat and difficult replacement procedure jeopardizes the entire computer.

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It is almost always better to buy an electronic that could fail from a person in a store because if you have a problem you can go back into the store and at least exchange the item. If buying online at least check the exchange policy and see if there is a store close to use in this case.